Calling all wine snobs, shut up and drink the wine!

Abstract

Is wine a snobbish product? Yes, it can be, especially when one is from a region where viticulture is non-native. But should wine be a product of snobbery? In this essay, the authors reflect on the intimidating world of wine tasting and its potential to breed snobbery. The authors explore the classist undertones embedded in traditional wine lexicons rooted in European tastes, critiquing its ways, and how it deters today's diverse consumers and learners. Challenging the norm, the authors advocate for a new pedagogical approach called “whining about wine” or “w(h)ine/w(h)ining,” a perspective that desnobberizes wine and emphasizes its role as a unifying medium rather than a divisive, elitist product. The essay proposes a pedagogical shift away from snobbery perpetuation, and towards a pedagogy that embraces self-awareness, experiential engagement, and internal knowing.